


I'm Half Human, and Half Machine

by MelodyoftheVoid



Series: The More Things Change [4]
Category: Invader Zim
Genre: Gen, Ghost Lady has a name now!, Good Parent Professor Membrane, Hurt/Comfort, Seems to be a common theme for me, Sibling Bonding, he's getting there, thank god
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-05
Packaged: 2021-02-27 10:20:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,683
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22075369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MelodyoftheVoid/pseuds/MelodyoftheVoid
Summary: Dib and Gaz solve their ghost problem.Alternate title: Dib gets into robotics
Relationships: Dib & Gaz (Invader Zim), Dib & Professor Membrane
Series: The More Things Change [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1571875
Comments: 20
Kudos: 34





	1. I'm Half Human, and Half Machine

After the initial wave of confusion and anger wore off, the Membrane household settled into a new normal. For the sake of convenience, the siblings had taken to calling the new member of the house Spectra, as she’d gotten tired of them referring to her as ‘ghost lady’. Gaz tolerated the presence of the ghost; she hadn’t especially won her trust with that possession stunt and occasionally she’d catch a hint of blue in her brother’s eye and panic. Dib on the other hand was over the moon, he’d finally managed to not only gain a solid relationship with his younger sister, he could now get through a day of school without being on the receiving end of a spitball or an insanity claim. Zim was still acting odd, but that was a mystery for another day. 

Spectra enjoyed her newfound home, it felt good to exist in a place with some life in it for once. She bristled a bit at her new ‘name’, but she wasn’t exactly in a position to argue. Dib’s earlier suggestions of names fell flat, especially because he insisted on them having some reference to the undead. Spectra was the only one she could stand. At least the kids weren’t calling her Ghost Lady. Watching the two of them bicker over the smallest differences made her feel like she belonged. Their one-sided video game battles and movie nights were a vast improvement to hearing the wind whistle through the cracks or watching the rats scurry across the floor was a welcome change.

Still, all three knew that something had to change. Dib appreciated the help that Spectra gave to him before, he truly did, however her constant presence was beginning to grate on his nerves. She did her best to give him space but given their current situation she couldn’t exactly go far. He still felt her glower at the kids who threw trash at him at lunch or snickered at his interests. He could handle them on his own now! 

Spectra wanted her autonomy back. She wanted to go out and actually see the city on her own, and Dib more often than not spent his free time chasing after Zim or off in the woods at 2 am. And in order to interact with the physical realm she needed to possess Dib and after last time the thought of that made her extremely uncomfortable.

Gaz just wanted to have a conversation with Dib without a certain ghost hovering over his shoulder. If he weren’t so attached to her, she would’ve banished her weeks ago.

After more than one confrontation, one involving an egg and a baseball bat that all three agreed to never speak of again, they came to the conclusion that Spectra needed a new body. With Membrane not coming home until later in the day, they spent the afternoon brainstorming ideas.

“What about necromancy? I could just use one of my spell drives and just… “, Dib made a ‘ta-dah’ gesture with his hands, “make you a new body.”

Spectra reeled back revolted. “ABSOLUTELY NOT! I don’t want to live in some rotting carcass!” 

Gaz chimed in from her position in her favorite ‘gaming chair’, “Yeah and besides, didn’t Dad ban you from raising the dead? You almost leveled the town last time.”

Spectra sputtered behind Dib as he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. 

“It wasn’t that bad.”

“It was absolutely that bad. No raising the dead.”

The three relapsed back into silence as Gaz tilted her head in thoughtful contemplation as she tapped away on her Game-Slave. 

“You know, you could just possess some rando and leave my brother and I alone.”

Both Dib and Spectra cried out in abject horror.

“GAZ!”

“No!” 

Gaz laughed at their reactions, almost missing a checkpoint before righting her character and continuing, “Kidding, kidding. If you really want a body so bad why not make one?”

Dib rolled his eyes. “Gaz we already ruled out necromancy, Dad would ground me forever.” Dib whispered to himself, “I could totally do it though.”

“Make a robot you idiot, aren’t you supposed to be some sort of genius? You’re good at those sorts of things, right?”

Dib slapped his forehead, of course! He just needed the supplies to make it happen. 

Just then, a voice called from downstairs, “Children, I have arrived back home!”

Spectra vanished back into thin air, not that Membrane would question her presence that much but the less she had to interact with him the better. She still harbored resentment towards him for his treatment of Dib. She’d probably just knock over his tea again, that was always fun.

The siblings made their way into the kitchen, where the professor unloaded his groceries for the first time in several years. 

“Ah! Perfect timing, I wanted to make dinner tonight and I need your help. After all, cooking is an excellent form of family bonding!”

Dib and Gaz shared a look, they knew that after the whole Florpus debacle Membrane had done his best to spend more time at home and this was his latest attempt to make up for the once a year visits. Regardless of why, Gaz didn’t care.

“So, what’re we making.”

“Spaghetti! Simple and a classic, perfect for tonight.”

Dib hesitated in the doorway. In spite of his dad’s efforts to bridge the gap between them, he still made the occasional jab at his love of the paranormal. He wanted to believe his Dad cared for him, but did he? As he stood there, silently experiencing his usual internal crisis, he heard Gaz say, “Hey Dib, weren’t you going to ask Dad to help with that project?”

The grin on her face implied that she most definitely knew he was not going to ask his Dad for help. 

“What project son?” Membrane put down the spatula he’d been using entirely wrong.

“Uhhh,” Dib’s mind blue-screened as he was put on the spot. “I’ve been working on this… artificial intelligence project! And I needed some help with the body. It’s more complicated than I expected.” He smiled nervously, cursing Gaz in the back of his head. 

Professor Membrane beamed, seeming to forget the food cooking behind him. “Of course I’ll help you son! What an admirable application of Real Science!” He clasped Dib on the shoulder, kneeling down to his height, “When do you want to start? Oh this is truly exciting!”  
As the professor began to rattle off the intricate details of humanoid robots, Dib glared at Gaz. She merely shrugged at him before returning to the spaghetti. She’d done her part; she could leave those two to their nonsense. 

Before he could fully comprehend what was going on, Dib found himself in his father’s home lab. 

“So son, what inspired you to start this project?”

Dib panicked, he really wasn’t expecting to need to explain why he wanted to build a humanoid robot so soon. He went with the first idea that came to mind.

“I wanted to see if I could?”

Smooth.

“I’m so proud of you son, exploring new interests is an important part of growing up! Now let’s get started, shall we? But first I need to call the lab, this has priority!”

Membrane had saved up almost two years’ worth of vacation days, so taking the time off for his son’s new pet project only took a phone call into the lab and a longer than expected explanation to the bewildered intern. Membrane had to confirm his identity at least twice as the poor intern tried to understand that yes, Professor Membrane was in fact taking time off from work. The fact that his own staff thought he’d lost his mind because he wanted to spend time with his children concerned him.

Regardless of the implications of the phone call, the two Membranes made short work of the robot. Years of building spy gear and dismantling Zim’s machines finally paid off. The planning took longer than the construction and within three days’ time they’d essentially completed the robot. Dib did not want to explain his choices for the appearance of the robot, so he asked his dad if he could do the finishing touches and make sure the ai would work with the body properly. Membrane, still elated that Dib willingly came to him with the project, gladly gave Dib the reins.

One run to get a wig and some clothes later, Dib stood in his room with the shell now donning clothes and a purple wig that Spectra guided him through styling. When he questioned how she knew how to do that, she merely stopped and stared for a moment. That oddity aside, with Gaz pretending not to pay attention to them Dib prepared the robot. 

“You ready for this?” Spectra looked slightly nauseous, but excited.

“I’m just… so grateful. You didn’t have to do this Dib.”

Gaz rolled her eyes, “Get on with it already.”

Spectra looked back at Dib before entering the body in front of her. She almost left the vessel when her sight went out momentarily before coming back. She felt her feet on the ground and marveled as she began to sit up. 

“It worked! I can’t believe it, it works perfectly!” Dib watched as Spectra adjusted to walking, a grin spreading across both their faces. Even Gaz gave a thumbs up from her position on the floor. 

A sudden shattering broke the reverie as all three turned to see the professor standing shock still in the doorway.


	2. Some Adjustments Needed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Formal introductions are made.
> 
> Aka: Spectra nearly throws hands with a world renowned scientist, said scientist is confused.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you tell that I'm using Spectra to vent? Nah.

The previously joyous atmosphere suddenly grew tense as the professor took in the scene before him. His daughter playing her game, his son excitedly talking to the figure in the middle of the room. That hair, that laugh… He blinked and realized he’d been staring at the robot for far too long and that all three people standing in the room were staring at him confused. 

~~He thought he’d never see those ice blue eyes again.~~

“Apologies for the intrusion son, I didn’t think that the robot would be capable of full motion yet. Why, I thought the way it was moving that there was a stranger in the house.” He let out a brief laugh in an attempt to diffuse the tension.

Dib grinned nervously, “No Dad, this is Spectra.” He glanced at her, a twinge of desperation in his eyes, “Spectra, could you introduce yourself?”

Spectra blinked slowly, still adjusting to being able to ‘feel’. Crap, he was talking to her wasn’t he. How was she supposed to respond? Robots were formal right?

“Hello professor, as Dib said before, my name is Spectra.” She placed her hand out, “A pleasure to finally meet you.”

She shook his hand, surprised to find his hand was made of metal. She’d have to get the backstory on that sometime.

“Remarkable, simply remarkable! How did you program her? May I see the code?”

Spectra and Dib shared a look as they could feel their story begin to unravel. This was not good. Dib looked at Gaz as she continued to ignore the situation, in her mind these morons dug their own grave. She’d just watch them desperately try to claw their way out. 

“Actually Dad, I wanted to keep this code to myself. Wouldn’t want someone else to get their hands on it after all.”

“Come now son, this is one of your first forays into real science! I want to know everything about it!”

Now Dib was starting to get mad again. He’d just spent all this time with his dad with minimal potshots at his chosen profession and now that they were done it was back to square one. 

“Dad this was a side project! I wanted to, I don’t know, try new things? Why isn’t my science not real enough for you?”

Gaz walked out of the room; she’d heard this argument enough times to know how this was going to go. She tried not to think about how that last one ended.

“Son, the paranormal aren’t real. The creatures you run off to ‘hunt’ don’t exist. I’m trying to ensure your future, Dib. And if this robot is any indication you have real potential with Real Science”

Spectra couldn’t keep quiet anymore, “What’s that supposed to mean?” 

Membrane, startled by the sudden comment, turned towards her. It was then she became aware of the massive height difference between the two of them. She swallowed out of reflex.

“What exactly do you mean by ‘real science’? You’ve mentioned that phrase a few times and I don’t know why.” She did her best to look innocently curious and not absolutely enraged.

“Well, I’m not sure if you’d know about this, but Dib here,” the professor made a vague gesture with his hand, “insists on becoming a paranormal investigator. It simply isn’t scientifically possible for any of the beings that he believes in to exist. I just want what’s best for my son, there isn’t a future for him.”

On the one hand, Spectra could keep relatively quiet. But like Dib, she’d been stewing over how Membrane brushed off any mention of the paranormal. And when she saw Dib’s lip quiver slightly as his eyes stayed glued to the floor, memories of that night in the house boiled to the surface. She wasn’t going to stand for this.

“So, let me see if I’m hearing this right, and please do correct me if I’m wrong. Your son shows a strong passion for something and you disapprove.”

The professor hesitated but answered. “Yes?”

“And from what I can gather, this is not the first time you’ve had this conversation with him. I can then assume he doesn’t tell you much about school then.”

Dib motioned at her to stop talking but she shot him a look. His father needed to hear this.

“Well, from what he told me while testing my response functions, other than Gaz I’m the only person he’s had a conversation with without being called insane, crazy, big-headed, loser, or ending the conversation with physical violence. Apparently, this has been going on for years. He’d hoped that you, at least, could lay off the same accusations.”

“I-“

“Dib created me for the express purpose of trying to connect with you, I think you at least owe him the same courtesy.” She glared at him with as much apathy as she could muster.

Membrane stood utterly baffled by this turn of events. Was this really how he’d treated his son, the same way that his peers had? The scathing expression on Spectra’s face served as a painful reminder of the fact that one of Dib’s own creations, not even a month old, held such a low opinion of him.

~~Is this what she would think of him now?~~

“Dib, is this true?”

Membrane can’t remember the last time he’d seen Dib openly cry in front of him, as he looked into his son’s watery eyes. A small nod confirmed his worst fears. He took a deep breath in and turned to Spectra.

“I’m not sure how my son created your programming, but I can see that I have made a grave error.” He then knelt down and hugged Dib tight, “I know that this was long overdue, and I have only begun to try and make this right. Please know that I love you son, and I’m so proud of you.”

The tears that Dib had tried to hold back fell in rivers as he and his father sat in his room, Membrane holding him close as he clung to the lab coat for dear life. Slowly, the worst of it passed, as father and son finally came one step closer to understanding.

Spectra smiled, this wasn’t exactly how she’d pictured today going, but she saw this as an absolute win. She hoped that she could find her place in the family that was beginning to stich itself together from the tattered pieces she’d found it in. She hoped that it could stay this way just a while longer. 

~~It would not~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be fluff but y'all wanted a confrontation so... Lol this was a long time coming and this train is not stopping. Things are gonna heat up soon, trust me. :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two for one deal! Drawing Spectra laying into Mem was very cathartic honestly.

**Author's Note:**

> It wouldn't be a true Invader Zim fanfic without a Lemon Demon reference. Enjoy my first attempt at just fluff, lord knows these kids deserve a break. Also if anyone is curious about the egg incident I can elaborate. :)


End file.
